Railfan Stories

I got up early on my birthday to do some trackside night photography. I wanted to take some long exposures and maybe include a train or two in them. My alarm went off at 04:30 and I was out the door shortly after 5 AM. I had decided to visit the CN Rivers subdivision, as … Read more

I was out looking for trains on my birthday this year. I spent the morning doing a little night photography and chasing the GWWD train. In between, I managed to capture VIA Rail’s Churchill-to-Winnipeg train and later the Winnipeg-to-Churchill train… by accident. Coming I was doing some night photography by the signal lights at mile … Read more

I had my 53rd birthday this week. I know it’s not as impressive a milestone as passing the half century mark, but it’s something to be noted and appreciated. Every day is a gift, and I appreciate that I am still here and able to enjoy life to the fullest. That being said, the pandemic … Read more

This is more of a series of photos than a real “railfan story”. I went out on April 26, 2020 to look for trains. I really didn’t see much, but I did spot this Loram grinder in the back track at Dugald, Manitoba. I took a few photos from the ground, then flew my drone … Read more

On April 25, 2020 I decided to take a run down the CP Glenboro subdivision. This track used to run between Winnipeg and Souris, Manitoba. In 2016 the center section between Rathwell and Nesbitt was removed, so now it is in two sections. I had been down to Elm Creek before but never to the … Read more

On the evening of April 14, 2020 I went out for a bit of railfanning. I took my usual route “A” of heading counter-clockwise around the city, crossing the CP Emerson, CN Sprague, CN Redditt and CP Keewatin subdivisions in sequence. The Sprague subdivision had a train heading out of CN’s Symington Yard, so I … Read more

After my success with the sunset meet I wrote about recently, I wanted to go out at last light again and photograph more trains. I puttered around the house until it was close to sunset, then hit the road east toward the CN Sprague and CN Redditt subdivisions. There was nothing happening on the Sprague … Read more

I had to run an errand for my wife on the evening of August 29. After I did that, I decided to see if anything was happening on the CN Sprague subdivision. As I approached the area, I saw an eastbound train leaving Symington Yard. I gave chase along the Trans-Canada Highway, which parallels the … Read more

After hearing that the La Salle grain elevator was demolished on August 22, I decided to go there the next morning to photograph the wreckage. Moments after I started driving, I saw fog – lots of fog. I’m no stranger to fog. I lived in the Halifax, NS area for three years and saw fog … Read more

In my last post, I talked about having railfan friends and the benefit of being plugged into the “railfan network”. On August 13 the news came out that westbound train CP 421 would have not one, not two, but three SD70ACu locomotives on it, including a “heritage” maroon and gold locomotive. Three of a kind… … Read more